Coinbase CEO Calls on Chase Customers in UK to Close Accounts After the Bank Says It Will Decline Crypto Payments

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong has slammed JPMorgan’s British retail bank, Chase UK, for changing its policy to block all crypto-related payments. Calling the move by Chase “totally inappropriate,” the Coinbase boss said: “UK crypto holders should close their Chase accounts if this is how they’re going to be treated.” Meanwhile, the British government is striving to make the U.K. a global crypto hub.

Coinbase’s CEO Slams Chase Bank Over Anti-Crypto Policy

The CEO of cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase (Nasdaq: COIN), Brian Armstrong, publicly criticized JPMorgan’s British retail bank, Chase UK, on Wednesday for changing its policy to block all crypto-related payments. The Coinbase executive wrote on social media platform X:

Totally inappropriate behavior from Chase UK (this is their UK bank only is my understanding) … UK crypto holders should close their Chase accounts if this is how they’re going to be treated.

Armstrong also alerted British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Member of Parliament Andrew Griffith on X to address Chase’s anti-crypto policy shift. “It appears Chase UK does not respect your policy goals,” the Coinbase chief wrote.

The British government is striving to make the U.K. a hub for digital assets. “It’s my ambition to make the U.K. a global hub for crypto asset technology,” British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said in April last year after introducing several measures to help “ensure firms can invest, innovate, and scale up.” He was the country’s Chancellor of the Exchequer at the time. Chief Secretary to the Treasury John Glen also said: “We want this country to be a global hub — the very best place in the world to start and scale crypto-companies.”

Chase recently informed its U.K. customers:

From 16 October 2023, if we think you are making a payment related to crypto assets, we’ll decline it. If you’d still like to invest in crypto assets, you can try using a different bank or provider instead — but please be cautious, as you may not be able to get the money back if the payment ends up being related to fraud or a scam.

The bank added: “We’ve made this decision because fraudsters are increasingly using crypto assets to steal large sums of money from people. Declining these payments is one of the ways we are helping keep you and your money safe.”

Commenting further on Chase’s new policy to block crypto payments, the Coinbase boss opined: “Really hoping there is more to this story than meets the eye, and that this does not reflect Chase UK’s actual view.”

What do you think about Chase’s new policy to decline all cryptocurrency-related payments? Do you think crypto holders should close their Chase accounts like the Coinbase CEO suggested? Let us know in the comments section below.